Samuel Johns likes to refer to himself as an artist, a storyteller. He raps, plays traditional Athabascan drums, and gives motivational talks to inspire youth. Johns grew up in Copper Center, a depressed Alaska village on the road system. He cites the availability of liquor in the village as one of the downfalls of the community.
“Growing up in the village, it’s good for some people. Some people find their peace in the wilderness and (aren’t) affected by addiction. But then when they are caught in that life, it could kill them.” It’s a story Johns knows well; many of his friends and family in the village have died after getting stuck in addictions.
“Growing up in the village is hard,” Johns said. “That’s why I have the ability to share my story, because I know where some of those kids are at.” With few opportunities and an epidemic of alcoholism in rural villages, Johns became depressed and after an alcohol-related death in his family he fell into drinking. He finally gave into the depression and desperation he had been feeling and drank away five years of his life. Johns now sees clearly that there has been a lack of sober male role models in his community. He didn’t have a role model and acknowledges that even he wasn’t present for his first daughter during his years of drinking.
Johns now wants to help change that environment for the younger generation living in Alaska Native villages. Through his positive message raps, he’s trying to reach youth in a way that’s relevant to their lives.
“Everybody has heard everything on the radio and I’m the exactly opposite of that,” he said. “Rappers, they talk about cars, money, making it rain. People can fantasize about it, but they won’t have a real connection. But when it comes to lyrics about domestic abuse, they can picture that in their mind if they’ve been around that. They can picture it, they can feel it because it’s real. My target is the younger generation. So they can listen to it and say, ‘Man, I kind of want to make a difference in my community.’”
Johns, who has been sober for almost seven years now, feels that in the village he never found a healthy way to grieve for the deaths of loved ones. Since January, Johns has been bringing his traditional drum to Bean’s Cafe to play traditional music for the homeless community, many of whom are Alaska Native. He plays music for them to “reconnect them to their lost identity.” He says the drumming is healing and traditionally a way to unite people. It’s his way of helping people heal and connect to their Native history.
You can see Samuel Johns’ videos on his YouTube channel.
It started with the discovery of long-forgotten gravestones in a thicket of bramble and alder. That set one author on the faint trail of a feisty Native American woman and oyster farmer who lived in 19th century western Washington.
Author LLyn De Danaan at home in Mason County, Washington.
Credit Mary Randlett
The biographer is using the resulting book to inspire other Northwesterners — particularly tribal members. She wants to bring out the stories of people who, in her words, have been “left out of our histories.”
The waterfront cottage that LLyn De Danaan calls home on Oyster Bay in Mason County, Washington, overlooks a cultural crossroads rich in history. So it is fortunate she is a cultural anthropologist by profession. Her eyes and ears are tuned to signs and stories of place. And at this place, waves of settlers came from the earliest times to reap shellfish.
De Danaan moved here in the early 1970s. In recent decades, she heard enough tales about one pioneer to start a file. The name was Katie Gale. This independent businesswoman owned property and tidelands in her own name in the late 1800s.
“That was all a little bit unusual from conventional wisdom and things I had heard about both people in the oyster business and Native American women,” says De Danaan.
Finding Katie Gale
The biographer was fascinated by how Gale straddled different worlds and stood up for herself and her mixed race children.
“Katie Gale: A Coast Salish Woman’s Life on Oyster Bay” was published last fall.
Credit University of Nebraska Press
“I suppose there just were too many things about that that intrigued me that I couldn’t let go of it,” she says. “I literally couldn’t let go of it for years!”
A turning point came when De Danaan and several friends from the historical society discovered an overgrown little homestead graveyard a mile from her house. One of the headstones belonged to Katie Gale.
“I was so amazed, excited, enthralled that I began beating on Stan’s shoulders as he was kneeling in front of me holding this stone.”
Her friend had to plead with her to contain her excitement and stop it.
“I literally said, ‘I know who this is,’ as if she were an acquaintance of mine. But it almost felt that way,” recalls De Danaan. “I would say that was a moment of calling. I have to tell this woman’s story. I have to know her.”
But here’s the problem: the long-dead Katie Gale left no letters, no journals. De Danaan could find no photographs of her, no living descendants. The best source material was a divorce case file. It took almost a decade to accumulate corroborating details, context and enough educated guesses to write a biography. “Katie Gale: A Coast Salish Woman’s Life on Oyster Bay” was published last fall.
“So many stories not told”
But the tale doesn’t stop there.
“There are so many stories not told,” says De Danaan. “There are so many histories and people left out of our histories. That is what my work has to be now. I feel that it is my obligation to do that.”
At a writing class at the Evergreen State College Longhouse in Olympia, De Danaan is a guest speaker.
De Danaan exhorts the seminar to bring forth stories before they’re lost, perhaps starting with family history. This is a message De Danaan returns to again and again in regular public talks and one-on-one mentoring.
“You’re able to find out a lot more than you think,” she says.
All of the students in the circle facing the author this day are Native American. It takes awhile, but eventually sensitivities come out.
Keeping tradition and culture alive
Author LLyn De Danaan (right) discussed her biography of Katie Gale with students at The Evergreen State College.
Credit Tom Banse / Northwest News Network
One student says she was hesitant about taking the class. Her grandmothers warned against exposing too much of their Spokane tribal heritage to outsiders who might twist it or exploit it.
Makah tribal member Vince Cook heard that from his elders too.
“That’s a tough one,” he says. “Because when I was younger we were told not to record, not to videotape.”
Cook says attitudes are changing now as people see tradition and culture slipping away. He feels spurred to write about his great grandmother and all the things she taught him.
“I think it is important to continue on not only for myself, but for my family and for others to know about the Makah culture and to keep it alive,” says Cook.
Happy Mother’s Day, Mom! I don’t think I’ve ever told you how much it meant to me when you’d wake up early to make us muffins in the winter. It’s one of my favorite childhood memories. Thank you and I love you.
Huckleberries are an important and much loved berry of the Pacific Northwest. They’re “in season” for only one or two weeks of the late summer and they don’t grow just anywhere. In fact, part of their appeal is that they refuse to be domesticated. Scientists/botanists have tried to domestic the plant to no avail. Thus, if you want to enjoy the ruddy purple berry you have little choice but to pack a picnic, pack the kids, and head to the mountains to find a good patch.
In the late summers my own family would spend an afternoon picking in our own carefully scouted secret patch. Mom would pack a picnic of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches while dad clumsily lathered his three daughters in sunscreen. Then we headed up Vulcan Mountain in search of treasure. The car carefully wound up the dusty dirt road as we climbed out of the Curlew Valley to over 5,000 feet above sea level. We’d eat at least as many berries as we picked but somehow we’d still manage to come home with two or three gallons of huckleberries. Some of the berries were used immediately as topping for shortcake or ice cream. The rest were placed in the freezer to be made into jam or to be carefully rationed out over the winter.
Because, you see, winter in the Northwest kind of sucks. And huckleberries were my mother’s secret winter-morning weapon.
Six-thirty in the morning never comes easily when daylight is still an hour away and at a time of year when daylight doesn’t guarantee sunlight—for days. Toss in a school morning and you have a recipe for three little girls who will fight to stay in bed under the warm covers. Mom usually had to threaten us out of bed on such mornings, but on the occasional Northwest winter morning—we never had advanced warning—my sisters and I would wake up to the smell of something glorious baking.
Something extraordinary to start an ordinary, cold, dark, and harsh winter morning.
And in the place of threats, negotiations, mumbles and grumbles, in the place of cold cereal or oatmeal, the cold and dark morning would become punctuated with the sound of three sets of excited little feet racing to the kitchen, shouting: “Get up! Get up! Mom’s making muffins!”
And there was never any doubt as to what kind of muffins they’d be, for there was only one kind: Huckleberry.
And 6:30 a.m. would become easy. Treasured. Magical. Nothing could go wrong, the weather be too cold, the morning too dark, on huckleberry muffin mornings.
To me, early morning batches of huckleberry muffins are still an ultimate expression of love, devotion, and solidarity in that, hey, sometimes it’s hard to get out of bed. And they’re one of my most treasured childhood memories. So if I happen to get up extra early, no matter the season, and if I happen to offer you a cup of my precious winter stash of huckleberries in a batch of muffins, then you should know that I love you. Dearly.
And I want your day to be extraordinary.
Bonnie’s Huckleberry Muffins
Make these for your mom as the perfect breakfast-in-bed treat! Makes 12 muffins
Preheat oven to 400 degrees
1 c. oatmeal
1 c. milk
1 egg
¼ c. oil
1 c. flour
1/3 c. sugar
2 t. baking powder
¼ t. salt
1 c. huckleberries (or blueberries/raspberries/strawberries)
Combine oatmeal, milk, egg, and oil. Set aside for 15 minutes.
Combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Make a well in the center of dry ingredients. Add oat/milk mix until moist, mix will be lumpy.
Bake 18-20 minutes.
Darla Antoine is an enrolled member of the Okanagan Indian Band in British Columbia and grew up in Eastern Washington State. For three years, she worked as a newspaper reporter in the Midwest, reporting on issues relevant to the Native and Hispanic communities, and most recently served as a producer for Native America Calling. In 2011, she moved to Costa Rica, where she currently lives with her husband and their infant son. She lives on an organic and sustainable farm in the “cloud forest”—the highlands of Costa Rica, 9,000 feet above sea level. Due to the high elevation, the conditions for farming and gardening are similar to that of the Pacific Northwest—cold and rainy for most of the year with a short growing season. Antoine has an herb garden, green house, a bee hive, cows, a goat, and two trout ponds stocked with hundreds of rainbow trout.
Self-taught Tulalip flutist, Cary Micheal Williams finds inspiration for his melodies from birds such as the water bird, owl and eagle. Photo/ Brandi N. Montreuil, Tulalip News
By Brandi N. Montreuil, Tulalip News
TULALIP – Drummer and singer, 24 year-old Tulalip artist Cary Micheal Williams, is among a handful of Native American flute players paving the way in Tulalip for the instrument. As a self-taught flutist he is working on his first music album featuring original melodies. His overall goal is not to become commercialized, but rather to teach the craft and sacredness of the flute to the next generation.
Recently, Tulalip News/See-Yaht-Sub was able to sit down with Williams and discuss his music, teaching, and current music project.
SYS: How long have you been playing the flute?
Williams: I would say a solid seven years. I will be playing for the rest of my life, and teaching it too.
SYS: You are also a drummer so how did you get into playing the flute?
Williams: Yes and I also sing. It first started with me going to my grandpa. He was upstairs in his art room and I said, “I want to play the flute.” He said, one second, and went downstairs. My grandma and grandpa had already bought a flute and he brought it upstairs and gave me that flute. He said, “Your grandma said you better take care of it. It’s a really expensive flute.” Right when he handed me the flute I played a song. Instantly I knew how to play and it was amazing. I went downstairs and played a song for my grandma. The song has changed over time because the flute is different. I was going up a hill after playing on a cliff side and I fell and the flute broke. I recently bought this new flute and it sounds similar to that one.
SYS: How did you choose your flute?
Williams: This flute fits to me naturally. When I was in a prayer ceremony, I kind of felt this change. I was playing my other flute and a different note came out of it as I was playing. Later on down the road I bought this current flute. That connection was just there, so I picked it up. It is made of really high quality; it is yellow cedar, red wood, and turquoise. It has a yellow cedar borough too, so it has a different tone that will come out of it with different melodies.
SYS: It sounds like the flute is more than just an instrument to you, and there is a sacredness to be being a flutist.
Williams: Yes, because it is like its own life. I am honored to give the life into it and the melodies come from the birds. Every now and then I will just get a melody flowing through me and I will start playing it. The flute is very versatile, it can send out a message without much interaction. I noticed if you beat a drum, you shake everything up, but if you were to play the flute you would attract way more people, and unity is what we need. That is what I stand behind with my flute, is bringing people together. I’ve always been that guy off to the side playing my flute.
SYS: You mentioned a difference between playing the flute and the drum; how do you go from hitting a drum to controlling your breathing in order to play the flute?
Williams: Singing really helps. It really opens up my diaphragm. My singing diaphragm is way lower so I am allowed to get more air out through the flute to my songs. When I stand up my diaphragm is more open, but also when I sit, I have more control over it. From being a singer from a young age my uncle taught me how to do techniques, he would make me lay on the floor and put books on my stomach and tell me to breath.
SYS: How often do you practice?
Williams: There’s just times where I will get this feeling and I’ll go grab my flute and start playing. I make sure I always have it with me wherever I go, even if I am in the city. If there is someone I run into, it’s like, “Hey I want to play you a flute song.” It’s not only healing for them but for me too.
SYS: Do you have a favorite melody so far?
Williams: I think all my songs are my favorite. I remember all my songs from my first flute to the one that I just received. I have this library of songs that run through my head.
SYS: Do you have a name for your album yet?
Williams: I think it would be named Sounds of the Birds, because every time I play I see birds on my flute, just bouncing around and I connect with them. I can hear all the birds singing with me.
SYS: Is there a particular bird that you draw inspiration from?
Williams: There isn’t one particular bird, more like a couple of birds. There is the eagle, woodpecker, blue jay, hummingbird, owl and I can’t forget the water bird. I get a lot of my songs from the birds and from the trees too. My favorite noise is when I tap on my flute keys. I don’t know why, but it is settling. Sometimes I have to play in front of a whole bunch of people and it is my way of grounding myself before I play.
SYS: Do you use sheet music for your songs?
Williams: No, it is all in my head. I have a friend that knows how to transfer the music into the periodic table and is working on putting it onto sheet music.
Some children have it [musical talent] naturally and some children have to learn it a different way. If I can master both the teachings [styles] then I will be able to hand it over. That’s what I am aiming for. I have been working on it for a long time. I didn’t know it would become my personal mission, but the flute is a gift for all people.
Photo/ Brandi N. Montreuil, Tulalip News
SYS: There aren’t a lot of Tulalip flute players; there are mainly drummers and singers. Do you feel like you are helping to create a space for flutists in Tulalip?
Williams: Yes, for future flutists most definitely. My nephews are going to be flutists. I have them blow in the flute and I will push the keys for them. They are literally using their air, so it shows them that their air that is booting through the flute can do it.
SYS: Where do you want to take your music?
Williams: I believe I can take flutist of the year. I just have to keep moving down that road. My main drive is to allow the next generation to pick up the flute, because everyday it is there for me. I think it could be there for our children too, or whoever wants to learn. It is really good medicine for yourself and I found also it is good medicine for others, so I am always willing to share it. I was told that the melodies, harmonic tones and vibrations from the flute have healing power. It can heal wounds and feelings. Don’t limit it.
Premiering on Tulalip TV this week is a new episode of Native Report # 808.
Native Report is an entertaining, informative magazine style series that celebrates Native American culture and heritage, listens to tribal elders, and talks to some of the most powerful and influential leaders of Indian country today.
In this edition of Native Report we learn about “Spirit of the Ojibwe,” a special book devoted to the elders of the Lac Courte Oreilles Reservation in Wisconsin. We visit the Chathlopotle Plankhouse, a traditional Chinookan-style cedar structure. And we learn about how the best practices toward revitalizing the Maori Language can also be applied to other language preservation efforts. We also learn something new about Indian country and hear from our elders on this edition of Native Report.
You will be able to watch Native Report Episode – 808 and many other Native programs on Tulalip TV, Channel 99 on Tulalip Broadband or Live on www.TulalipTV.com on a PC, Mac or any ‘Smart’ device such as phone or tablet.
Native Report – 808 can be watched at either of these times: 1:00 p.m. or 9:30p.m.
TULALIP, Wash, May 1, 2014 – The Taste of Tulalip is the ultimate “feast of the senses” that combines wine, food and fun in a relaxed setting that has helped define it as the defacto event of its kind in the Northwest.
The Tulalip Casino and Resort is a property on the Native American land of the Tulalip tribe, hence the casino part. Having the luxury of one of the areas top-ranking casinos helps provide revenue for the kind of budget required for the resort to put on a first-class event.
What makes the Tulalip Resort such a great venue for a wine and food event is really a combination of things going for it. A first-class staff such as Chef Perry Mascitti, Sommelier Tommy Thompson and its Food & Beverage Director, Lisa Severn. These three not only know how to throw a party, they do everything first-class.
Secondly, are accommodations which also present a very welcoming vibe and the rooms at Tulalip definitely fit the bill. Perhaps the nicest feature of the rooms is the three-tier shower system which hits all areas of the body, making you not want get out of it.
Assuming you pay for the full weekend pass, you’ll start things off with a multi-course reception dinner in the main convention hall. Everything from the quality of each course you consume to the attentiveness of each wait staff person, it’s a dinner you won’t soon forget. This past event, Carla Hall of ABC’s “The Chew” was on the center stage welcoming the guests and helping to get the “party started”.
Several hours later after you experience this food and wine assault on the senses, you’ll find a gorgeous, well-appointed room waiting for you to sink into.
The Grand Tasting is the event which most attend and it’s not just any “second-rate” tasting, you’ll find craft beers, imported wines from other countries such as Italy and France along with domestic favorites from California, Oregon and Washington State.
There are various mini-events which also take place during the Grand Tasting and those can be both a fun and educational to attend. There’s a cooking demo by a celebrity chef where you’ll get to try the food when done with the demo –winner of Top Chef, Kristen Kish, held the honors in 2013.
There is also a “Rock and Roll Cooking Challenge” across from the main grand tasting hall which has always proved to be a light-hearted, fun-filled event as well.
Additionally, there’s a Private Magnum tasting lounge where Tommy Thompson and crew open up extremely rare, extremely expensive wines from around the globe. Bourdeaux, Burgundy, Australia, Italy, Napa, Willamette Valley and Columbia Valley’s best are often represented in this exclusive tasting.
If you love wine, you owe it to yourself to get into this tasting in order to taste wines from the likes of Chateau Margaux, Screaming Eagle, Schafer, Quilceda Creek to name a few.
It’s the culmination of so many things which all seem to happen with flawless execution on the part of the staff and guests which helps guests feel very much a part of what’s going on.
Any more, being able to define an “ultimate food and wine” destination in most areas has become more difficult thanks to an availability of so many good ones to pick from. There’s no doubt that it should always be on your “must do” list of having an ultimate wine and food weekend in a relaxing, fun-filled place that you won’t soon forget.
TULALIP, Wash, May 1, 2014 – The Taste of Tulalip is the ultimate “feast of the senses” that combines wine, food and fun in a relaxed setting that has helped define it as the defacto event of its kind in the Northwest.
The Tulalip Casino and Resort is a property on the Native American land of the Tulalip tribe, hence the casino part. Having the luxury of one of the areas top-ranking casinos helps provide revenue for the kind of budget required for the resort to put on a first-class event.
What makes the Tulalip Resort such a great venue for a wine and food event is really a combination of things going for it. A first-class staff such as Chef Perry Mascitti, Sommelier Tommy Thompson and its Food & Beverage Director, Lisa Severn. These three not only know how to throw a party, they do everything first-class.
Secondly, are accommodations which also present a very welcoming vibe and the rooms at Tulalip definitely fit the bill. Perhaps the nicest feature of the rooms is the three-tier shower system which hits all areas of the body, making you not want get out of it.
Assuming you pay for the full weekend pass, you’ll start things off with a multi-course reception dinner in the main convention hall. Everything from the quality of each course you consume to the attentiveness of each wait staff person, it’s a dinner you won’t soon forget. This past event, Carla Hall of ABC’s “The Chew” was on the center stage welcoming the guests and helping to get the “party started”.
Several hours later after you experience this food and wine assault on the senses, you’ll find a gorgeous, well-appointed room waiting for you to sink into.
The Grand Tasting is the event which most attend and it’s not just any “second-rate” tasting, you’ll find craft beers, imported wines from other countries such as Italy and France along with domestic favorites from California, Oregon and Washington State.
There are various mini-events which also take place during the Grand Tasting and those can be both a fun and educational to attend. There’s a cooking demo by a celebrity chef where you’ll get to try the food when done with the demo –winner of Top Chef, Kristen Kish, held the honors in 2013.
There is also a “Rock and Roll Cooking Challenge” across from the main grand tasting hall which has always proved to be a light-hearted, fun-filled event as well.
Additionally, there’s a Private Magnum tasting lounge where Tommy Thompson and crew open up extremely rare, extremely expensive wines from around the globe. Bourdeaux, Burgundy, Australia, Italy, Napa, Willamette Valley and Columbia Valley’s best are often represented in this exclusive tasting.
If you love wine, you owe it to yourself to get into this tasting in order to taste wines from the likes of Chateau Margaux, Screaming Eagle, Schafer, Quilceda Creek to name a few.
It’s the culmination of so many things which all seem to happen with flawless execution on the part of the staff and guests which helps guests feel very much a part of what’s going on.
Any more, being able to define an “ultimate food and wine” destination in most areas has become more difficult thanks to an availability of so many good ones to pick from. There’s no doubt that it should always be on your “must do” list of having an ultimate wine and food weekend in a relaxing, fun-filled place that you won’t soon forget.
An event to just have fun, make a little extra cash, and remember how far the Tulalip Tribes has come, the annual tribal member bingo celebration is always a crowded event. This year marks 13 years since the new bingo hall opened, though it is only the second year that the celebration was held in two separate sessions, so that twice as many people could attend. Both sessions were packed with eager players enjoying free bingo and entering into a drawing for a variety of prizes. Some players even brought lucky bingo daubers and had lined them on the table in front of them, waiting to blot out a win.
Tulalip elder Norma Comenote said, “I’ve never won here, but I come every year. It’s good to visit with everyone, my friends and family, and all my relatives. It’s all about having fun.”
You can’t really go wrong with free bingo, a free raffle, and good company, but some players still had their eyes on the prize.
“I’m just waiting for that $2000 cash raffle win,” said Breland Joseph.
Players could win a Pendelton blanket with a card underneath in the raffle. The card had another prize written on it. Winners chose a blanket with the hopes of scoring the big cash payouts or a big screen TV. Unfortunately for Breland, no sooner had he said he was going to win the $2000 prize, when the next raffle winner swooped it out from under a blanket.
The evening was full of laughter and fun. Bingo Manager Tammy Taylor had the honor of hosting the celebration this year, though she had some pretty big shoes to fill.
“I just want to say I’m honored to be here, but I think we all miss Mel Sheldon. He hosted tribal bingo night every year, and always kept us laughing with his antics at the mic. I invited him again this year but he was unable to attend,” she said.
The Tulalip Bingo Night brings people together to enjoy time with friends and family, sharing a meal and an evening of frivolity.
Andrew Gobin is a reporter with the See-Yaht-Sub, a publication of the Tulalip Tribes Communications Department. Email: agobin@tulaliptribes-nsn.gov Phone: (360) 716.4188
The annual Tulalip Quil Ceda Talent Show on Tuesday, April 22, gave students an opportunity to showcase unique talents, imaginative recreations of pop songs, and amazing skills. The kids put on an exciting show that included singing, dancing, improvisational song and dance, martial arts demonstrations, and instrumental performances. An all-around good time, the show was entertaining.
Each student had five minutes of fame as they performed an act of their choosing. Performances varied, with original pieces of choreographed dance, including daring breakdance moves, hula hooping and more. Each act reflected the personality of the performers through wardrobe and dance choices. At the end of the show, school was over, but performers returned later that night with an audience of peers and parents, running through the set for an evening finale.
Jacob demonstrates a Kung Fu form. Andrew Gobin/Tulalip NewsGuitarist and vocalist Henry gave an excellent performance. Andrew Gobin/Tulalip NewsJade, Singing. Andrew Gobin/Tulalip NewsMateo, singing and dancing in the style of Michael Jackson. Andrew Gobin/Tulalip NewsA lovely duet by Candace and Macaela. Andrew GObin/Tulalip NewsJose, Alex, and Coltin breakdancing. Andrew Gobin/Tulalip News
Rhianna, singing a song by pop star, Rhianna. Andrew Gobin/Tulalip NewsKamaya singing Michael Jackson’s “I’m Bad” Andrew Gobin/Tulalip NewsKamaya singing while Selina performs kung fu as a dance. Andrew Gobin/Tulalip NewsThis little singer’s name is Emma. Andrew Gobin/Tulalip NewsKeyondra Hula hoop dancing. Andrew Gobin/Tulalip NewsKeyondra Hula hoop dancing. Andrew Gobin/Tulalip NewsMasters of Ceremony Avel, Ivan and Anthony. Andrew Gobin/Tulalip NewsMasters of Ceremony Avel, Ivan and Anthony. Andrew Gobin/Tulalip News
Andrew Gobin is a reporter with the See-Yaht-Sub, a publication of the Tulalip Tribes Communications Department. Email: agobin@tulaliptribes-nsn.gov Phone: (360) 716.4188
TULALIP – Hibulb Cultural Center is changing up their event series this month. The center, known for its monthly events featuring cultural demonstrations, lectures, traditional storytelling and workshops, has added a children’s reading series, Hibulb Reading Time, and a new film event, “Bring your own family history film night.”
The two new events resulted in creative ideas being exchanged between staff and volunteers earlier this spring. Hibulb Reading Time features Tulalip tribal members, including Tulalip Tribes board member Theresa Sheldon, volunteering to read books that explore Native American themes and identity, followed with a craft based on the story.
“Bring your family history film night,” is a special film event based on local family submissions that honor and capture family history. The event will be held May 29, in the center’s longhouse, and continues the center’s history of screening films that highlight Coast Salish life and Indian Country issues. Film submissions for this event will be accepted until May 28, and should include a 15-minute video that focuses on your family or family history.
Tulalip elder Sandra Swanson is hosting a quilting class every Sunday throughout the month, featuring her quilting expertise and the basics of quilting. You will need to provide your own fabric for this workshop.
This month also marks the last chance to view the Coast Salish Inheritance: Celebrating Artistic Innovation exhibit featuring art from Tulalip artists. The exhibit will close on May 21.
Events and workshops are included in the Hibulb Cultural Center admission price. Admission is free for Tulalip tribal members. Adults (18 years and over) $10.00, senior (50+ and over) $7.00, students (6-17 years old), military and veterans $7.00, children (5 years and under) free, and families $25.00. The first Thursday of each month is free admission.
For information on Hibulb Cultural Center events and lectures, please visit their website at www.hibulbculturalcenter.org. Please contact, Lena Jones at 360-716-2640 or Mary Jane Topash at 360-716-2657 regarding film submissions for “Bring your family history film night.”
Brandi N. Montreuil: 360-913-5402; bmontreuil@tulaliptribes-nsn.gov
